Empty
by hear the whispers
Summary: He didn't know that they would forget they were meant to hate each other when he went to check on her. He didn't mean to comfort her. He didn't mean to understand her. "Right now they were not the Evil Queen and Prince Charming. They were two broken, exhausted people desperate to find some sort of comfort in the world that had dealt them both so many harsh blows". Evil Charming.
1. Chapter 1

_**Okay, so I recently re-watched the Doctor with my friend (bad idea, I cried again) and she asked me if I would write a short piece of writing dedicated to David and Regina. She gave me the prompt: Archie asks James to check on Regina after losing her true love again. Once there, they forget that they are meant to be enemies. Vulnerable Regina, conflicted James. Angst/Romance/Hurt/Comfort.**_

_**Well, seeing as the Doctor basically tore my heart out and crushed it (not to mention what it must have done to Regina), angst wasn't really a problem, nor was the hurt/comfort. Anyway! **_

_**Oh, btw, this story is not related to my Hook/Regina story. It's a stand alone. **_

_**Let me know what you think! Please leave a review!**_

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_**Empty**_

The rhythmic sound of shoes on hollow wood was starting to drive him crazy. And yet, he couldn't force his feet to stop their continuous pacing. Worry was gnawing in the pit of his stomach, refusing to leave him no matter how hard he tried to reassure himself. It was ironic really; a prince pacing the steps of the Evil Queen's house, waiting for her to answer the door. It was ironic that his worry was directed at the woman who had ruined his life.

He hadn't really been sure how to react when Archie had called him, not fifteen minutes ago. He'd been even less sure what to do when the therapist had asked him to go to Regina's house and check that she was alright. It was Regina's fault really that he hadn't known what to do. Prince Charming would have ignored the call; he couldn't have cared less about what happened to the evil queen. But David Nolen would have gone to check on the mayor. David's feelings towards Regina had always confused James. Because now he knew that everything Regina had done had been a ploy to hurt Snow. But he couldn't deny that, no matter how much the curse had influenced David, that man's feelings had been entirely genuine.

It had been the knowledge of how Regina's confrontation in the stables with the man she loved had turned out that had sent him running for his truck. The information that Regina had not been in the best space when she had left that had turned his palms sweaty with fear. He knew exactly how hard it was to lose your true love, how heart breaking to feel that connection you had break. His connection with Snow had all but become non-existent now that she was in another world. His words 'I can feel it' to Henry, meant to reassure the boy, had become hollow with each passing day. He'd started to wake clutching his chest, as if he could ease the emptiness inside him, the missing piece he was beginning to think he would never recover.

What would it be like to lose your true love, twice?

When you fell in love, truly fell in love, everything seemed all the brighter, and you felt as if the evils of the world could no longer touch you. When you lost your love, true or not, things didn't go back to the way they used to be. They became worse, plunged into the darkness of despair. How could you live, knowing that your other half was gone, forever?

How would Regina be feeling now? What would she do if she believed that there was no hope of love left for her in the world? Would Henry's love, love she had barely felt since Emma's arrival in Storybroke, be enough to keep her going?

James spun on his heal for what felt like the hundredth time and knocked sharply on the wooden door. He barely felt the sting of protest in his knuckles. 'Regina! Regina, if you don't open the door I'm going to come in!' He didn't particularly care that his words sounded threatening rather than concerned. All he knew was that Henry was facing losing one of his mothers, and he knew that the boy wouldn't cope if he lost this one.

When he received nothing but silence, James squared his shoulders and drew his foot back. There was a resounding crash as he kicked the door open and it swung wide, making sharp contact with the wall.

James stepped inside, taking in the quiet darkness of the house. The first thing he noticed was the mirror. Shattered and fractured, barely any of the reflective glass remained in the frame. Sharp deadly fragments lay still on the floor, glinting in the outside light. And somehow those slivers of glass, those shattered remanets, sent the fear in his stomach churning in his chest.

'Regina?' He couldn't get his voice to remain steady as he called her name, quickly checking the ground floor for any sign of the woman. The atmosphere in the dark house was heavy, pressing down on him. There wasn't a single mirror left in the house that wasn't broken.

At the foot of the staircase, James stopped his frantic searching, head cocked to the side. The house was silent, except for a soft, almost unnoticeable whimpering sound echoing from the level above. The sound was not reassuring. James took the steps two at a time, his long legs helping him to reach his destination quickly.

He rounded the corner and stood in the doorway of the master bedroom, gripping the frame tightly. He did not breathe a sigh of relief on seeing her, lying on the bed, curled in on herself. In fact, at the sight of the broken woman, he felt his breath catch in his throat as pity and sadness gripped him.

He approached the bed slowly, moving around to the opposite side so that she would see him coming. His legs bent at the knee as he crouched down beside the bed, mindful that he would be looming over her otherwise. 'Regina?'

The evil queen, or the woman who had once been the evil queen, lifted her arm from her face for a moment, and looked at him. Her dark eyes were all the darker for her sorrow, the light fractured in salt tears. But it was the emptiness in her eyes, the hollowness, that struck him. Archie had mentioned it briefly, but it was another thing to see it. It was another thing entirely to feel his own emptiness rising inside him at the sight, to feel the void in his soul reach out to the woman curled before him.

Perhaps that was what caused him to reach out a hand and wipe the tears from her face.

Regina didn't stiffen or flinch from the contact; on the contrary, she leaned into it, sitting up painfully slowly. Perhaps she just needed to feel the warmth, to know that she could still feel something. James stood, though perhaps it was David moving, and sat beside her, drawing her body against his own. Her body was icy cold, the chill seeping out from inside her. She was the ice queen for all the wrong reasons.

At that point, she did stiffen. Regina pulled away, her eyes questioning, and there was a fear there; a fear that he was there to hurt her. The sight of her fear made him feel helpless, and his shoulders dropped in time with his sigh. He looked her up and down, checking for injuries. It was then that he noticed the bruises on her neck and the blood and cuts on her right hand. He reached out and took it with a gentleness that surprised them both, cradling it as if it was the most precious thing in the world.

Was it David moving, or James? David wouldn't have had the courage to approach the Evil Queen at her most vulnerable. So perhaps it was James. Were they that different, really?

The cuts, the blood, were fresh. He felt a mixture of horror and pity and just…sadness, when he realised that the mirrors had been broken by her own hand, not by magic. As far as he could see, there was no glass stuck in her hand, so perhaps fortune had been kind in that instant. Then again, fortune didn't seem to ever glance in her direction, so he doubted that was the reason.

'I killed him'. Her voice was so soft and so weak that for a moment he wondered if it had been his imagination. Never, not even when she had been pleading with him, had he heard her sound so young. So vulnerable.

David, James, whoever he was right now, stared at her. Her gaze wasn't on him, but on her hand, and there was nothing but self-loathing in her eyes. 'I turned him to dust. I'm a monster, rotten to the core. Now at least the mirrors will show me the truth'.

They were wrong. They had all been wrong. Whoever had said that Regina was still a monster, one without emotion, had clearly never bothered to look past the cold surface. But there was no coldness now, no mask of hate and indifference, and he could see right through the weak wall guarding her to the damaged, broken girl beneath. Had anyone ever bothered to hear her side of the story? When had this all begun? Had the stable boy been the beginning or the end?

Why was he asking these questions?

He heard himself asking where her first aid kit was, felt his muscles move and take him to the bathroom. When he returned, Regina was sitting with her legs tucked under her to the side, leaning forwards with her weight supported by her arms. Her head was bowed. The sheet below her was slowly dampening as tears leaked from the corners of her eyes to fall with a soft 'plunk' on the bed. It was such a broken image that for a moment he could do nothing but stand still as wave after wave of sadness and pity gripped him.

He sat down beside her and took her hand gently, avoiding her gaze as he dabbed at the blood and double checked for glass. He bandaged the hand had just as gently, fastening it closed with a safety pin. The white of the bandage was a strong contrast against her olive skin.

'Why are you here?' He heard an attempt at strength in her voice as she spoke, but it broke on the last word.

There was a lot he could say. Too much, in fact. He didn't want to tell her that Archie had called him, not when there was a good chance that Regina would never trust the therapist again. He placed the first aid kit down before he turned to her. Her face was open and questioning, and looking at her it was easy to forget that she had ever been more than a broken, grief stricken woman hiding from the world. It was easy to forget where her grief and pain had taken her. 'I wanted to apologise'. He had, after all, though he hadn't realised it until that minute.

She tilted her head, the movement dislodging more tears from her eyes. 'For what?'

She was still wearing her boots. She must have gone home and gone straight to bed. For something to do, as a way of avoiding looking at her face, he shuffled back and took her foot in his hand. He dragged the zip down slowly and placed a large hand under her knee as he pulled the shoe off her foot. She didn't resist or comment and he wondered whether she was even aware of what he was doing. As he moved to the second boot, he spoke, trying to find some order to his thoughts. 'I shouldn't have tried to kill him. I should have listened to you. I just…I saw what he had done to Whale, and I didn't want anything of the kind to happen to you'. Truth. He hadn't wanted to consider the implications of that before, but now here it was, laid naked and bare in the space between them.

She curled her legs back under her when he removed the boots and regarded him through dark eyes. He couldn't tell what she was thinking. He saw nothing but pain and grief and loneliness in her eyes. 'Something has happened to me, David, and that was never something you could have saved me from'. He was not her Prince Charming, and she wasn't his damsel to save.

David. Was he meant to feel bothered that he preferred the name she had created for him to his known name? But then again, James wasn't his name. It never had been. James had belonged to a twin he had never met. And he had never really like Charming. It made him sound like a pompous arrogant prince. David sounded simple, more like the shepherd he really was.

He didn't know what to say to that. He couldn't stop staring at her. The sheer level of her sorrow and anguish was heartbreaking. She was still beautiful though, even with tears in her eyes. In fact, without the anger and loathing darkening her face, she was more beautiful than he could have imagined.

'Why are you here? You could have waited to apologise. Shouldn't you be taking care of my son?' No bitterness, just frankness and exhaustion.

'I…I know what happened in the stables Regina'. At that, another barrier in her eyes fell, and he suddenly saw the true depth of her misery. It was as if she had been trying to protect him from the void that was her soul and heart.

Seeing it, David couldn't hold back any longer. He shifted onto the bed, kicking his shoes off as he went, and sat next to her. She stiffened briefly when he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against his strong chest. And who could blame her? He was the husband of her arch enemy. He shouldn't be here, comforting the Evil Queen. Her hand went up to his chest, as if to push him away, but instead her fingers tightened in his shirt. She slid further into his arms, twisting so that her head was pressed against his shoulder. His shoulders were strong and broad, and so like Daniel's that something in her broke.

The tears came then, fast and thick. He held her tightly as she sobbed into his shirt, great hacking sobs that shook her whole body and made it difficult for her to breath. Her hand flattened against his chest and she could feel his heartbeat, strong and steady against her palm. Alive. He wasn't Daniel, but somehow the feeling steadied her, brought her back from the edge of an abyss, and her sobs slowly quietened. He rubbed a hand over her back soothingly as she hiccupped several times.

She looked up at him. He had been crying too. There were clear tear tracks on his handsome face. She wasn't sure what to feel now. Was it an automatic reaction when he leaned forwards and kissed her forehead? His lips were warm and real and she felt heat bloom through her whole body, chasing the chill away.

Was it an automatic movement when she tilted her head up and brought her lips to his? What was it that made him lean into that kiss? Was it a want for comfort and companionship? Was it because they were both lonely, miserable people? Was it something else, something more?

David, because James had never been his real name, pulled her down with him and wrapped his arms around her. He rested his chin atop her head as she breathed into the hollow of his neck.

'I wanted to hear your story'. A whisper in the darkness against her ear. The sky outside her window was darkening fast, the pale pink of sunset already dwindling on the horizon.

She told him. She told David, not Charming, about her childhood. She told him about her life as the wife of the king, of her days as Rumple's apprentice, of the slow but sure darkening of her heart. She told him about her love for Snow, and how that had dwindled and curdled into something bitter. She told him about her quest for revenge. She told him about her mother. She told him about Daniel. The words flowed thick and fast; she had never spoken of this to anyone before. It was something of a relief to get it off her chest. And as the words left her mouth, she felt the pain of those moments slowly dwindling to a dull ache in her chest, until the only thing left was the more recent incident. Perhaps that would never fade.

He didn't know what to say when she finished. What could he say? Snow had mentioned what had happened to Daniel not long after their marriage, but hearing it from this broken woman was another thing entirely. So he said nothing. Instead, he tightened his arms around her and pressed a soft kiss to her hair line, and another to her forehead.

She pressed her hands against his chest, just over his heart, and let herself relax into his embrace. This was what she needed. She needed to feel alive. She needed, perhaps more than anything, to feel cared for. She couldn't bring herself to ask what came next. Right now they were not the Evil Queen and Prince Charming. They were two broken, exhausted people desperate to find some sort of comfort in the world that had dealt them both so many harsh blows.

He didn't know what they had. He didn't know what had brought him here, what had caused the events that had led to him lying in her bed with her curled against him so close that their bodies seemed to meld into one. He didn't want to know.

Right now, they were hollow people with an emptiness they were attempting to fill. They were just people. At this moment there was no broken curse, no lost land. There was no Snow or Emma or the reckoning that they would bring with them when they returned. There was no manipulative Rumplestiltskin, no conflicted Gold. There was no Henry. There was just the two of them. Anything beyond this dark room did not matter, therefore it did not exist.

David, because that would always be his name now, didn't know what tomorrow would bring. Perhaps they would wake up and all this would have been a dream. Perhaps she would wake up and remember that they were meant to be enemies and would push him away. Perhaps he would. Maybe they would hate each other again. Maybe she would look at him with those scornful eyes he was having trouble remembering and blast him through the nearest wall. Maybe he would recoil and leave her in this empty house with her emptiness.

Maybe he would wake as James as she as the Evil Queen.

Regina sighed against his neck, a warm breath against the night chill. Sleep was quickly claiming her, exhausted as she was from her emotional outburst and the story only he knew. 'Please stay, David'. It was a mere whisper, a murmur he could have ignored. Instead, he tightened his arms further and closed his eyes, pressing one more kiss to her sweet smelling hair.

Then again, maybe not.

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_**Okay, so I'm not really sure where half of that came from. Probably had something to do with the emotional trauma that was the Doctor and the Queen of Hearts (Regina baby!).**_

_**Anyway, please let me know what you think by leaving a review!**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Hello everyone! So, as you have probably guessed, I have decided to continue this story. It took me so long to decide simply because I wasn't sure whether I had the time or the energy to commit to another multi-chapter, but it just wouldn't leave me alone. **_

_**Warning, extreme angst in this chapter! The title of the chapter is not a miss print, so that might give you an idea. This has not been through beta, so you will have to tell me what its like ;)**_

_**Please Review!**_

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_**Chapter 2 – Mourning **_

When he woke up, it was still dark. His mind was foggy and his arms tightened automatically around the warm body pressed against him. He blinked, his eyes adjusting to the dark of the room, attempting to understand where he was.

Remembering was like plunging into cold water. The content feeling in his heart fled as his body stiffened. He glanced down slowly. Regina lay curled against him, so close that he had to crane his neck down to see her face. Shadows partly obscured her face, but in the little light from the moon, he could see that she was still asleep. It was not that that kept him staring though. The silver light played in her dark hair, caressing one side of her pale face. It glinted in the dried tear tracks snaking down her cheeks. A lump rose in his throat. She looked so young, so vulnerable. There was a serenity that he had never seen from her. Without the walls that were usually so rigidly in place, she was far more beautiful than he had ever imagined. Here was a side of her that very few people were allowed to see.

He waited for the disgust to come, for the anger, for the prince in him to wake and push her away. But there was nothing, and as his arms loosened, Regina murmured sleepily and nuzzled her face against his neck, shifting closer to his body warmth. Her hands were still pressed against his heart. Another piece of his heart broke for the woman that had only last night told him her entire miserable story. Life had been unkind to her, and the least he could do was to ensure that, at least today, she didn't wake alone.

The dark sky was grey now, tinged pink and yellow on the horizon. Wrapping Regina in a secure embrace, David closed his eyes and let his body relax against the bed, shifting closer to the sleeping woman in his arms.

This was for Regina. It had nothing to do with his sudden desire to never let her go.

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When he woke again, he knew instantly that it was well into morning. The sun streamed through the windows, warming his face and chasing away the little remaining cold from the night before. This time, there was no confusion, and instead of opening his eyes he tightened them around the woman in his arms and yawned. He rubbed a hand up her still clothed back and stroked her dark hair with the other.

Sleepily, he cracked his eyes open. Only to find that Regina was staring right back at him, little more than an inch away. Her eyes were wide and awake, and she stared at him with the simple astonishment of a child. There was no amnesty in her gaze, no anger or disgust, and he was very aware that she had not yet removed her hands from his chest.

Smiling slightly, he said, 'hello'.

She blinked owlishly, the surprise growing as he didn't pull away. 'You stayed'. She sounded shocked and a little wary, as if expecting him to recoil at any moment. He suddenly realised that she was still very much the vulnerable woman from the night before. The walls remained down, as if she didn't have the strength to replace them, even in her sleep. That deep emptiness endured in her dark eyes.

He nodded, his expression serious yet kind. 'You asked me to'.

She shifted back a little, searching his face for any signs of deceit. She found none. 'I still didn't expect you to'.

Oh, how she sounded like a little lost child at that moment. There was so much he wanted to say in response, and so much that he knew he couldn't. 'I didn't want to leave you alone. No one should have to wake up by themselves after what you went through'.

She shrugged, her expression still distrustful. 'I've done it before; I probably could have done it again'. Despite her dismissive tone, the pain was back in her eyes. She trembled in his arms, and his body responded automatically, bringing her even closer if possible, tucking her head under his chin as his large hand cupped the back of her head. She stiffened momentarily, her hands pushing at his chest in a vain attempt to get away, but she relaxed when he persisted. She breathed deeply against his neck, inhaling the smell of leather and oranges, and something else that was purely him. It was a surprisingly calming scent.

David gazed out the window at the pale blue sky. They would have to face what had happened today. Though he had a strange desire to keep her here and keep her safe, he could not. Now that the rest of the world was awake, he would need to become the sheriff they expected him to be. Regina stirred, pulling back so that she could look up at him again. He shifted down the bed so that they were at eye level, not wishing to place himself above her. She stared at him for a long moment, taking in the kindness and sympathy in his eyes. She looked away, unable to take the intensity of his bright blue eyes. It was a strange feeling, laying here with her most hated enemy's husband knowing that he now knew her entire story. It was strange that she felt no desire to push him away, no anger that he had had the gall to comfort her at her most vulnerable. It was strange that he had actually succeeded in comforting her.

It was strange, perhaps most of all, that she was still allowing him to.

'Thank you'.

He blinked once and raised his eyebrows. 'For what?'

'For…caring for me. For being there. For staying. For…for forgetting that we're meant to hate each other'. She couldn't help the last sentence, and it was almost like she was trying to remind herself of that.

He smiled, his hand trailing absently up to stroke her hair. It was so natural that it startled her, but David seemed not to notice. 'You're welcome. As for hating you…' he shrugged his broad shoulders. 'I hated the Evil Queen. You are not the Evil Queen Regina. You are… you'. He ended rather pathetically, breaking eye contact in embarrassment.

She bit her lip, tears welling in her eyes again. He was so like Daniel. 'Do you truly believe that I can change? Isn't there a point where there is no turning back?'

David shook his head forcefully. 'I do. You've already begun to change. Do you really think that the Evil Queen would have let me comfort her?'

She smiled a little. 'No'.

'Well there you go. You're changing for Henry. So yes, I do believe that you can change. And…I will do my best to help you'. He wasn't quite sure where that had come from. But he did know that he had seen a different side of her, was still seeing it, and he wanted to keep seeing it. He wanted everyone to see how wrong they had been. He had heard her story, a story that would give most nightmares, and he was still trying to understand how she had endured so much pain. 'You are a remarkable woman, Regina Mills. Not many people would have survived what you have'.

A faint blush graced her cheeks, but there was no pride or confidence in her eyes. Nothing but emptiness. 'Surviving is not hard, David. Surviving and keeping hold of who you really are is another matter. I survived, but I changed. I took the easy road. I tried; really I did, to remain good'. She shrugged her shoulders, ashamed of the path she had taken. With Daniel's death still so fresh in her mind, the guilt and shame was overshadowing the majority of her grief. All of this had begun in Daniel's name. She had sullied the name of a boy who had never wanted anything more than to be happy and to see her happy. And, no matter how much she may have tried to convince herself, she was not happy as the Evil Queen. Revenge was a bitter tonic. 'But I gave up. I am weak, David. Weak because I can't help but love people who will inevitably hurt me. I am weak because I couldn't be a better person for my son when he really needed it most. I am weak because I couldn't let the man I loved go, and because of my folly I put him through unimaginable pain'.

David could feel tears stinging his eyes, and he reached up to brush a few escaped tears from her cheeks. Even now, after having comforted her for an entire night, after having her sob on his shoulder, he still couldn't quite come to terms with how grief stricken and guilt ridden she truly was. 'Regina…listen to me, okay? Love is not weakness. Love is strength. It is because of love that you are trying to change. It is because of love that this curse was broken. It is because of love that you were able to get through to Daniel'.

A sob burst from her lips, so sudden and violent that it startled both of them. Then he sat up and pulled her upright, tucking her against his shoulder as the tears began to flow. It was a miracle that she even had any left. Her body trembled violently, but her sobs were quite, muffled against his shoulder. His shirt was rapidly dampening and when her arms wrapped around his neck he did nothing more than pull her onto his knees, rubbing her back with long smooth strokes. He had the strongest desire to find some way of taking her pain away. Because he couldn't look at her and see the Evil Queen, not anymore. Now he saw no more than a broken young woman who had been beaten down so many times that she was struggling to get up again. A woman who had never had a friend to help her. He tilted his head to the side, placing a kiss against her hair line, reminiscent of the night before. If his lips lingered a little too long on her skin, neither mentioned it. It filled Regina with a warmth that fought stubbornly against the coldness and darkness and emptiness of her soul, a warmth that wrapped around her heart like a barrier, refusing to let the emptiness in.

The sound of the doorbell echoing through the empty house interrupted their moment.

Regina went very still in his arms, her sobs quietening. There was a long moment of silence, before the doorbell rang again, followed by a very familiar voice shouting, 'Mom?! David? Are you in there?'

Regina's eyes went wide and she released David, standing on shaky legs as she staggered towards the corridor. 'Henry…oh my god I completely…was he alright?'

David stood with her, holding onto her elbow to steady her. 'A little traumatised, but yes, he was alright'.

Regina wiped at her face furiously. Her face was free of makeup, and with the evidence of tears it made her look far younger than he was used to. 'I don't want him to see me like this'.

David stepped in front of her, placing his hands on her shoulders. He rubbed his thumbs over her crinkled shirt soothingly. 'Regina, your son loves you. He needs to see you. It doesn't matter how you look. Alright?'

She hesitated, and then nodded. As David followed her out the door, she grabbed a scarf from her dresser and wrapped it around her neck, hiding the violent purple and black bruises that marred the skin of her throat.

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Regina leaned her head against the front door for a moment, feeling lightheaded. David was beside her, frowning anxiously. 'Are you alright?'

She nodded absently. Too tell the truth, she was exhausted. She had not had any rest the night before, as her dreams had been filled with visions of a dead stable boy and a girl on a horse. In the end, it had left her more tired than she had been already. Taking a deep breath, she curled her fingers around the door handle and pulled it open. The lock had broken when David had kicked it open the night before, but apparently Henry had not realised that.

Henry stood on the door step, his hand raised to knock on the wood. To her great annoyance, Red stood behind him, gazing with a relieved expression over her shoulder at the prince standing in her hall. 'Mom!' Henry threw himself forwards and wrapped his arms around her tightly, breathing in the familiar scent of the woman who raised him.

Regina's heart melted, and she forgot that Red was standing there. She knelt down and embraced her son tightly, attempting to keep her tears at bay. The little boy drew away, far too soon for her liking. He stared at her in shock, taking in the evidence of tears in her red-rimmed eyes and the dishevelled state of her clothes. His eyes widened in horror as he took in the crisp bandage wrapped around her hand. 'Mom, what happened to you? Was it that man in the stables? Is he dead? Did he hurt you?'

Regina's eyes closed in pain at Henry's words. Yes, the man from the stables was indeed dead. But she was not pleased about it, and she didn't think she'd be able to stand it if Henry was. 'Henry, I'm fine, I – '

Henry cut across her. 'Don't lie to me mom. I know you're hurt. I want to know what happened, and I want to know the truth'. He spoke forcefully, the spark of anger in his eyes overshadowing the fear and concern that caused him to frown. There was something wrong with his mother's eyes. They had always been dark, but now…now they looked empty, like swirling black holes staring out of her face. Her hands were trembling on his shoulders, and as she stood, still bending forwards, the scarf encircling her neck slipped, and he caught sight of something dark against her skin. Before she could react, the little boy snatched the end of the scarf, tugging it away from her neck as she finished standing. Henry heard his breath catch, felt his body stiffen in horror at the black and purple bruises scattered around her neck. Regina's hands flew upwards to cup her throat, but the damage was done. 'Mom! What happened?'

Regina swallowed nervously. She didn't want to lie, not after what he had just said. She'd spent his entire life lying to him. She took a step away from her son, watching the confusion cloud his face. She couldn't help it. She wasn't ready to talk about what had happened with Henry, not when he was still so sure that the world consisted of black and white and no in-betweens. She didn't want him to see Daniel as the monster Whale had made him, and she didn't want him to see _her _as the monster for preserving his body. She was breathing too quickly through her nose, her hands still cupping her throat as her chest rose and fell in a rapid uneven rhythm. Spots danced at the corners of her eyes.

Henry stepped into the house, his hands stretched out towards the woman. She looked completely panicked, her eyes wide, like a deer caught in the headlights. He'd never seen her look so…vulnerable, and he'd never thought that he would ever associate that word with her. Looking at her, it was nearly impossible for him to see her as the Evil Queen.

Regina continued to back away. David's voice cut through her panic a second too late. She cried out, more from shock than pain as her bare feet descended on the shards of reflective glass from the mirror that she had broken the night before. She stumbled, pain shooting through the pads of her feet. Strong arms caught her waist and pulled her up, preventing her from slamming into the ground. David swept her into his arms without apparent effort and hurried towards the living room, followed closely by a terrified Henry.

Red remained standing in the entrance hall, staring down at the shards of mirror scattered across the marble floor. Spots of blood stained the mirrors and the white floor. She looked up at the empty mirror frame. She pressed a hand against her stomach, feeling slightly sick. What on earth had happened? David had called her and asked her to mind Henry the night before. He had not explained why he was going to the former mayor's house. She knew very little about what had happened at the stables, though she had gathered from Henry's panicked story that a man had attacked him in the stables, and that his mother had definitely known him. Had that man done that to Regina's throat? Judging by the white bandage on her hand, the mirror had not been broken by magic. What had happened to Regina to make her do that? 'Red? Can you grab the first aid kit please? It's upstairs in the master bedroom'.

Shaking her head to clear it, Red called back, 'sure!'

David laid Regina down onto the couch gently, supporting her head as if she was a small child. He sat down on the edge of the couch and lifted her ankles into his lap, examining her feet critically. Regina's eyes were screwed shut. Through the pain she berated herself; how could she have forgotten about the mirror when she had a physical injury to prevent her?

'Mom?' Henry knelt by her head, his hand grasping for her uninjured one. Worry creased his young face, and he could not push it aside. He had never seen her so off balance, so affected by something that someone had said to her. He hadn't meant to cause such a reaction.

'I'm alright Henry'. She winced as David's fingers skimmed lightly over her cuts. He returned her glare steadily, his fingers massaging the top of her feet in an attempt to ease the pain. David raised his eyebrows and glanced at Henry. She bit her lip. 'Henry…I know that you want to know what happened but…some stories are best left untold'.

Henry frowned, inching closer to her. His natural curiosity was getting the better of him. Ever since he had first realised that the fairy tales in his book were real he had been trying to understand why his mother had cast the curse. His book only said that apparently Snow White had destroyed the Evil Queen's happy ending. Naturally, he had linked what he knew from the storybook with what he had seen in the Disney movies. The Evil Queen had cast the curse because Snow White was prettier than her. Yet, even then, it hadn't been the most satisfying explanation. He might not know the Evil Queen, but he knew his mother, and he knew that she would never be bothered by something to…petty. Even in those moments when he had hated her for cursing all these people, he had known that the woman who raised him would never do something so radical unless there was a good reason for it. In the book, the Evil Queen had cast it for revenge. He cast his mind back to the man in the stables, to the moment that his mother and David had entered the room. He tried desperately to remember Regina's initial reaction. The exact events were practically wiped out by the fear he had felt. Closing his eyes, he concentrated as hard as he could. And he remembered. A shocked, fearful face, with eyes twinkling with desperate hope and…love. He'd only ever seen that expression once; when Emma awoken him from the curse.

He swallowed thickly. Whoever that man had been, he'd meant as much to Regina as her own son did. And he had just inadvertently accused that man of being a monster. 'Mom…I want to know. I want to know your story'. Regina's eyes searched his face, that same strangled hope shinning in her eyes, as if she had was trying not to hope encase of disappointment. Again, a hard lump prevented him from speaking. He had done this to her. During his time since the curse had broken, having witnessed his mother attempt to be better for him, he had come to understand that she really did love him. Her words, _'I don't know how to love very well',_ had affected him greatly. He had realised that during the curse, Regina had loved him, but she had struggled to find the right way to show him. He had realised that there was something preventing her from simply expressing it out right. For some reason that he did have an explanation for, she was afraid of love. He squeezed her hand. 'Please? It's not in my book, and it's probably the most important story'.

Regina shuddered, fighting down the impulse to burst into tears. Henry was the second person who had asked to hear her story in less than twenty four hours, the second person to care about her at all. The difference was that there was a lot of her past that was not appropriate for him to hear, whereas David was a grown man who could handle it. A strange rush of feeling flowed through her as her thoughts returned to the man that had cared for her the night before, whose arms she had woken up in, and who was now sitting at the end of the couch massaging her calves, listening intently to the exchange between her and her son. She had no idea why he had suddenly decided that she was worth his time, or why she had subconsciously decided to let him see past the walls guarding her heart.

She had no idea why his presence was preventing her from rebuilding those walls.

Red broke the tense silence of the room. She walked into the living room, the first aid kit swinging from her hand, and stopped as she took in the strange sight. Her eyes fixed on David's hands, watching as he continued the slow pressure on her ankles. Her lips parted and her brow furrowed. _What on earth…?_

David looked up, having sensed her presence. He stretched out a hand to take the kit, but his right did not lift away from Regina's bare skin. Red let the kit fall into his hand and moved closer, bending down so that she could whisper in his ear, 'when you've done…whatever it is you intend to do, I expect an explanation as to why you spent the night here. Is that understood?'

He smiled tiredly, and this close she could see how exhausted he looked. His irises carried the same loneliness and sadness that was present in Regina's, that same emptiness that prevented his smile from reaching his eyes. It was as if a great burden had settled on his shoulders, simultaneously wiping away the determined and optimistic mask that was forever present on his face. Now, if he had said that there was even the smallest hope of finding Snow and Emma, she wouldn't have believed him for a second.

What on earth had happened? Why on earth did David and Regina share that same empty expression? Why was David holding her ankle as if the loss of contact would break him?

Shaking her head and pushing her hectic thoughts away, Red turned and left the room. A moment later, they heard the door slam.

Henry immediately turned back to Regina, his expression pleading. 'Please mom?'

Regina's eyes found David's. A silent understanding seemed to pass between them, one that Henry watched with some puzzlement. David gave her ankle a small squeeze of encouragement before opening the first aid kit. Regina took a deep breath. 'To understand who that man was, I need to go back to the beginning. I can't tell you everything Henry, some of it you're two young to understand, and some I have no wish to relive presently. But you will hear the whole story one day, alright?'

Henry sat on the couch and moved closer to her, frowning. 'Someday soon?'

She bit her lip. Henry had never taken this much interest in her life before. She couldn't refuse him. 'Someday soon Henry, I promise'. She smiled at him. Then her expression turned sombre. 'I did not have a very happy childhood Henry. My mother…my mother was…not very kind do me. She never showed me the affection a child needs, and she spent the majority of my childhood instructing me on how to be a 'proper lady'. If I did something she didn't like she would…hurt me'. Regina's eyes closed, hoping to avoid Henry's shocked gaze. She hated having to expose him like this. 'My mother was after power, and she wanted me to have power as well. She wanted me to marry a rich man. But then, when I was very young, only about eighteen years old, I fell in love with a boy who worked in the stables. I knew my mother wouldn't approve, so I kept it as secret as possible. I was…happy, so happy. I'd never known love before, and Daniel showed me how much brighter it made the world'. Her expression had softened, and Henry felt that lump in his throat again.

Across from them, David was gently tending to her foot, but his jaw had tightened. He may have heard the story already, but it would probably never stop affecting him.

'And then, everything changed. I saved a young girl's life when her horse bolted while she was riding through our estate. Her name was Snow White'. Even with her eyes closed, she could feel the way Henry's body stiffened in shock. 'I didn't realise, but she was the daughter of the King. Later, he came to thank me, and because Snow's mother had recently died, he proposed, hoping that I would make a good mother for Snow. He didn't love me, and he was at least three times my age. My mother accepted'. Her hand had tightened in Henry's, and he was beginning to understand that this story did not have a happy ending.

'I went to Daniel that night, and I asked him to run away with me. I told him that power meant nothing, and that all I wanted was to spend the rest of my life with him. He proposed'. A shadow of a smile filtered across her face. 'As I accepted, we were caught by Snow. She was confused, as she didn't understand why I was kissing another man. She fled, and I was forced to run after her. I caught up to her, and I managed to make her understand that I loved Daniel, and that true love was the most powerful magic of all'. Henry's breath caught. He had had no idea that that line had originated with his mother. 'I made her promise not to tell anyone…especially not my mother'. Regina's voice darkened as she spoke, and opposite her David rubbed her leg comfortingly. His chest was tight and he was having trouble breathing. He wasn't sure if he could bear to hear this again.

'The next night, as we were about to flee, my mother caught us. She was angry that I was going to throw away my opportunity of becoming queen and gaining power for the love of a stable boy. I thought…I tried to convince her that it would make me happy, and she seemed to be coming around. And then…she…' Regina was having trouble getting the words past her throat. She was spinning in that black abyss of misery again, lost in her memories, with only the hand on her leg and the small hand in her own to anchor her. 'She ripped his heart out and crushed it to dust, right in front of me'. Regina's voice broke and, though the words were rushed, Henry heard them perfectly. His world was spinning, and his vision blurred noticeably as tears gathered in his eyes. He'd never felt so horrified, so guilty, as he did at that moment.

Regina took a deep shuddering breath and continued. 'I tried to bring him back, but even true loves kiss can't wake the dead. My mother told me that love was weakness, and that eventually our love would have faded. Then she told me to get ready for my wedding. The next day…I discovered that Snow had broken her promise and told my mother that I was about to run away. Now do you understand Henry?' Her eyes opened, and her expression was almost pleading. 'Do you understand why I hated her, after that? I tried; I really did, to get over it, to move on. I tried to convince myself that she didn't know what she was doing. It worked a bit; there was a time when I did love Snow, a time when she was my second chance at happiness. But I was trapped in a castle surrounded by people who didn't know me, with my only confident a man who was trying to turn me into a monster, and a king who was still in love with his dead wife. Please Henry, I need you to understand'.

And he did. He knew that what had happened to her was no excuse for casting the curse, and he sensed that there was still more behind that. But he understood how her grief and resentment had turned to hate. Something of the same had happened to him. His indignation and anger that his mother had lied to him had led to him finding Emma. He nodded, squeezing his mother's hand perhaps a little too tightly as the tears gathered in the corners of his eyes. 'Go on'.

Regina turned her gaze up to the ceiling. 'But I couldn't let him go, not quite. I placed a preservation spell on his body. And when Rumplestiltskin offered to teach me magic, I accepted, because I believed that I could find a way of bringing Daniel back. My dealings with Rumple led me to a man by the name of Frankenstein. He told me that he could bring Daniel back. He tried, and he failed, and I gave up. I let myself go and I let myself become immersed in the Dark arts. But that's another story, one that will take far too long to tell'.

'But when I cast the curse, I brought the mausoleum, including Daniel's body, here. And somehow, Whale, Dr Frankenstein, found out. He took Daniel's body and he took one of my hearts and he brought him back'. That strangely wistful, almost desperate, hope suffused her face, and opposite her David bowed his head over her now bandaged feet, feeling the tears stinging his eyes. The confusion she must have felt on seeing Daniel, the hope that she could finally have a happy ending, all of it was reflected in her voice now, as if she was reliving it. It was heartbreaking.

'But you know the story of Frankenstein. The process of bringing him back turned him into a monster. It wasn't him. When I tried to get through to him, he attempted to kill me. I succeeded though, just for a moment, and he came back'. Tears trickled down her temples and into her hair as she spoke, choking on the words. 'But he was in pain, and he begged me to kill him. He told me that he loved me, and that I needed to let go and love again. And then he reverted back to the monster and I…I killed him'. She couldn't stop herself. However much she wished to be strong in front of her son, she couldn't stop the tears. A choked sob escaped her lips before she covered her mouth with her hands, frantically trying to keep them in. Her face was wet with fresh tears, her hair damp from where they had leaked down her temples. Her body shook as she tried to keep herself together.

Henry was speechless. He might be too young to understand the pain of losing someone you loved twice, but he had a vivid imagination, and the sight of his mother desperately trying to keep herself together despite the pain swirling in the empty eyes was enough to break his own composure. He bent so that he was lying flat on his stomach on the couch beside her and wrapped his arms around her waist, pressing his face against her shoulder. What little self-restraint she had left shattered as she felt her son's tears against her skin. A violent wail spilled from her lips as her arms went around her son, sitting up to pull him flat against her chest. Henry's eyes closed tightly as he buried his face against her chest, his little body trembling from his own sobs as his mother's body shook forceful. He wanted to keep her together, to protect her from whatever was tearing her apart from the inside, but he was too shocked and too horrified and miserable to find the strength.

Strong arms wrapped around his back and he felt a warm solid body pressed against his side. A scent of leather and oranges tinted the familiar apple fragrance that was so perceptible around his mother, and smell of those he loved worked its way into his system, calming him. He was filled with a strange sense of security and safety, as if beyond their embrace the world did not exist. He tightened his arms around his mother's waist, and his balled fists brushed against David's hand. David had one arm wrapped tightly around Henry, the other pressed against Regina's back. Regina's head was bent over Henry's, and she was leaning against the former shepherd. David's cheek was pressed against her hair, and his eyes were closed. Despite that, the tears were still escaping past his eyelids, and he was shaking from the force of mother and son's sobs. He knew that he was holding them too tightly, but he couldn't bring himself to loosen his arms. He had thought that he would be able to listen to Regina's story again, but he had never been so far from the truth. The sight of her breaking down in her son's arms as the boy tried to keep her together had been too much for him. Now, as he tried to hold them together with the bare strength of his arms, he felt something within him snap. His face twisted and he clenched his jaw, but a sob broke past his lips.

He wasn't sure what he was crying for now. He didn't know whether he was crying for Regina and her horrible past, Henry and his grief, or whether he was crying for himself. But everything, all the repressed misery and despair and guilt gathered in him like a tidal wave, rising behind his eyes. He'd always tried to be strong, to be the prince people expected him to be, but here he was no more than a man who had lost so much more than he should have. He saw his mother's dying face and a small crying baby as he shut the doors of a wardrobe. He saw Emma and Snow falling through a portal and a desperate woman begging with him not to kill the man she loved. His breathing quickened as his chest restricted painfully, and now it was hard to tell who was clinging to whom. As sobs wracked his frame, it was hard to tell who was being comforted and who was comforting.

Out in the entrance hall, Red sat on the marble floor, leaning against the wall. Tears streamed down her face as she listened to the sobs and wails echoing from the living room. Regina's story had shaken her. She hugged her knees to her chest and buried her face in her arms in an attempt to keep her own crying quiet. She wanted nothing more than to join the embrace of those broken souls, never mind that one of them was the enemy of her best friend.

Because she knew now that Regina was not the Evil Queen. No one as heartless as the Evil Queen could howl with such misery that it tore at her heart. No one as cold as the woman that had cursed them could sound so broken.

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_**Should I stop there? Is it worth continuing?**_

_**Please do let me know what you think! I have a vague idea of where I am going for this, so I am open to suggestions! **_


	3. Chapter 3

_**I struggled a little with this one. The characterisations just didn't feel as natural as they should have. Its shorter than the last one, which I apologise for, but hopefully the next one will be longer.**_

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_**Warning: Mentions of suicidal thoughts.**_

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_**Anyway, I do hope you like this chapter. Please leave a review!**_

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_**Chapter 3 ~ Coping **_

There was a silence in the living room. The mournful cries seemed to echo through the empty house, the last whimpers flittering in the dark corners and up the fireplace. The people seeking whatever shreds of comfort they could from each other did not move. They didn't speak, because breaking the silence would mean facing what had just happened. It would mean that this was real, not a dream, that the Evil Queen and Prince Charming had just broken down with nothing more than a young boy in between them.

Regina sat leaning against David, her left side pressed up against the soft material of the couch. Her legs were stretched out straight on the couch, Henry in her lap, his side pressed against her torso, his body twisted around so that his face was buried in her shoulder. David's arms encircled mother and son, his grip too tight, his head resting atop Regina's. The woman's eyes were closed, exhaustion settled like a physical burden on her shoulders. Her cheek bones glistened with dry tears, though she no longer had any left to cry. David's chest was strong and supportive against her back, and within the circle of his arms she felt strangely secure. Her own arms wrapped around the little boy in her arms, and with the rise and fall of his breathing David's large hands brushed against hers.

Despite the fact that none of them were crying now, that the moment for comforting each other was over, Regina couldn't bring herself to move. It had been so long since Henry had been comfortable with sitting close to her, never mind touching her, for an extended amount of time. She had no wish to shorten it by her own violation. Never mind that she could feel David's warm breath ruffling her hair, the shift of his defined muscles as he breathed, the strong corded muscles in his arms as he held her close. It didn't matter that if she shut her eyes, she could almost imagine that it was Daniel sitting behind her, not the former Prince Charming.

It was strange that at a time when she most needed her true love, at a time when she had just lost him, that she would be noticing the similarities between him and Snow White's husband. The thought that this man was bound to her enemy didn't seem to bother her anymore. Perhaps if her walls had had time to rebuild themselves over night, perhaps if her composure had returned, she would feel horrified that she had allowed him to see her so vulnerable, so weak and defeated and everything that the Evil Queen was not. But that had not happened yet, and she was strangely content to wait, rather than spend what little remained of her energy rebuilding them herself.

David's eyes were open, staring out at the bright blue sky. A haze of white clouds extended over the house, thick and darker to the right of his vision, and he wondered whether it was going to rain. He wondered when he was going to become uncomfortable with comforting the woman in his arms, when he was going to start becoming repulsed with holding her. His own tears had tasted salty and bitter. He'd had no idea that he had repressed his grief and sorrow so much. At first, it was simply the sight of Henry and Regina crying in each other's arms that had moved him to tears. But then it had become something else. Oh he had cried for his mother, but not enough it seemed. He hadn't had the chance to cry when he was forced to send his daughter away in an enchanted wardrobe, as he'd been injured moments after, and the curse had prevented him from remembering that he had even _had _a daughter to mourn. And when the curse had broken, all the memories had come rushing back with such a speed that it was difficult to process them, never mind his emotions. And then he had lost his daughter and his wife, after having just been reunited with them. A few tears had been shed, but he his focus had been on the woman he blamed for their loss, his anger having prevented him from actually mourning them. It seemed that the stress of hoping for their return, the fear as he felt the connection with Snow fade with each passing day and the horror as the emptiness slowly consumed his heart had finally become too much. If things were different, he would probably be ashamed that he had shown weakness in front of the Evil Queen.

But in some strange way, they were equal now. He had seen her vulnerability, and she had seen his weakness, seen that he was not as strong as people believed him to be. The difference was that his weakness had come from her grief.

The comfortable silence was broken by a strange, deep rumbling sound. David jumped, his arms tightening instinctively around the people in his arms, immediately alert for any danger. Regina's eyes flew open, alarm constricting her chest. She had neither the energy nor the strength to defend them currently.

Henry lifted his face from Regina's shoulder, his expression sheepish. 'Sorry'. His face was dry, his tears having dried on the material of Regina's shirt.

Regina blinked rapidly at him. Henry looked from her surprised expression to David's bemused face peaking over her shoulder and burst out laughing. He couldn't help it. Despite what had just happened, he found their confusion priceless.

Another grumble, and Henry pressed his hands against his stomach in a vain attempt to stop it, his laughter increasing as a slow smile spread across Regina's face. The smile felt stiff, unnatural, as if her muscles had long forgotten how to move that way. David's chest vibrated against her back and a deep laugh sounded against her ear as the man watched the little boy clutching his stomach. The sound of her son's laughter filled the empty house, and Regina heard rather than felt the low chuckle slip past her lips in the face of the boy's amusement. It had been so long since she had heard him laugh.

David propped his chin on her shoulder to get a better look at Henry, smiling widely at the boy, fixing the picture in his memory. It was strange, but despite all the times that Henry had said that he was happy with Emma, from what David could remember from the curse, he didn't think that he had ever heard him laugh.

David's hands now rested against her stomach, having fallen naturally as Henry pulled away, and he had not removed them. As Regina watched her son quieten, his expression embarrassed and sheepish, she suddenly realised that if someone had walked in at that moment, having had no knowledge of the curse or their lives and history, they might have seen an ordinary family. The thought was enough to make her stiffen. A family was what she had always wanted with Daniel. How could she sit here, letting another man comfort her, letting him hold her, when he had just died? How could she allow herself to laugh when she was still mourning him?

Without any warning, she swung her legs out from underneath Henry and stood, wrenching herself forcefully from David's strong arms. She stood on shaky legs with her back to them, her eyes closed as her hands fisted. She felt that urge to cry again, yet her eyes remained dry. She had no tears left to shed. She could feel their eyes on her back, their gazes questioning and puzzled. She tried to focus, attempting to rebuild the wall around her mind, but her efforts remained unrewarded. Why couldn't she do it? She used to be so good at it before.

'Henry'. She mentally cursed her shaky voice. 'What would you like for breakfast?'

Henry stared at the back of her head. What had he done wrong? Was it that he had laughed too soon after her story? Had it been the wrong time? 'Umm…I really don't mind mom'. The title slipped out as naturally as it used to, before the book and his knowledge of the curse, and he felt a strange relief that there was no bitterness attached to it.

Her stiff posture wavered for just a second. She had not missed the title, the way he hadn't even hesitated before saying it. She was trying to rebuild her composure at least, and that one syllable had nearly broken it. She began to walk away towards the kitchen, desperate to get away. David stood, his face creased in concern. He was having trouble understanding why she was suddenly retreating. 'I'll help you'.

She turned to face him, holding up her hand to prevent him from following. 'No...I'll be fine'. She smiled softly, her emotions still astonishingly easy to see as they flittered across her face. 'You've done enough'.

Before he could say anything, she turned and left the room, moving as quickly as she could on her damaged feet. He bit his lip as he watched her hobble away. Perhaps he had pushed the contact for too long. His intention had not been to make her feel uncomfortable.

The moment she was out of ear shot, Henry reached out and touched his hand. The boy's expression was concerned and earnest, and a little guilty. 'Did I do something wrong? Was I not meant to laugh?'

David shook his head, his gaze thoughtful. He crouched down in front of Henry and took the boy's small hands in his own. Henry might be growing up, but his grandfather's hands still swamped his. 'Henry, look at me'. The boy looked up from their hands, meeting David's eyes reluctantly. He was struck suddenly by a familiar emotion in those eyes bright blue eyes, one that he had seen moments before in his mother's. 'Henry, what do you know about your mother? How does she cope with something?'

Henry thought back, trying to remember. He felt a pang in his heart. He remembered that his mother would withdraw, and when he had seen her as nothing more than the Evil Queen he had believed that it was because she didn't love him. Whenever she had come home tired, when she had stayed out late or dismissed him he had assumed that she was plotting something. Now that he could look at it objectively, now that he knew that she was more his mother than the Evil Queen, he knew that it had simply been a way for her to remove herself from something she found difficult to deal with. She was having trouble rebuilding that wall that only he had ever been able to see through, though he had always been aware that it was present, so she was fleeing. 'She…she would close off…or she would walk away'.

David smiled at the boy, glad that he was getting his meaning across so quickly. 'You didn't do anything wrong Henry. I don't know your mom very well. Knowing her story is a very different thing to actually knowing her. All I know is that she loves you, and that she loved the man that died yesterday. We all have our different ways of coping with grief. Some of us bottle it up; some of us withdraw deep inside ourselves until we can separate our emotions from reality entirely. Some of us cry and let it out. This isn't something that you have caused Henry. You laughed. All Regina has ever done has been for you, for your happiness. Do you really think that she would mind if you laughed?'

Henry's eyes were full of tears again. He was thinking of all the comments he had made about how evil she was, and how she had withdrawn within herself almost every time, how he had ignored the flash of hurt in her eyes as he turned away. He shook his head at his grandfather. David squeezed his hands. 'I'm going to go help her. I think that she may have forgotten that there isn't much she can do with an injured hand'.

Henry lunged and wrapped his arms around David's neck, hugging his grandfather tightly. David felt a rush of affection as he returned the embrace, his chest restricting painfully. He had missed this with Emma, missed her childhood and difficult adolescent years, the day she fell in love and the day she gave birth to Henry. He had missed Henry's life too. Perhaps he could make up for that, at least in regards to Henry. He doubted that he ever would with Emma. Some things might be forgiven, but not forgotten, and there was no way that he could work towards forgiveness when she was trapped in another land. 'Thanks Gramps'.

Emotion choked his throat at the title. He could remember that all he had ever wanted in the Enchanted Forest was a family. He had wanted children and grandchild, and possibly step-grandchildren. He really needed to go before he started blubbing again. He pulled away and ruffled Henry's hair affectionately before walking out of the room. Henry called after him. 'David!' The former prince looked over his shoulder and raised his eyebrows. Henry looked conflicted, chewing on his bottom lip nervously. He nodded decidedly. 'Tell mom that she can heal herself. Its magic, but she's not causing anyone harm, so it's okay'.

David smiled approvingly. 'I will. I'll call you when breakfast is ready'.

He walked slowly towards the kitchen, his brow furrowed in thought. He was still having trouble understanding how they had ended up in that situation. How had he gone from hating her and not being able to stand her presence no more than twenty-four hours ago to wanting to comfort her, to wanting to take her pain away and wishing that she hadn't had such a miserable life?

A fresh breeze wafted through the entrance hall, bringing with it the hint of oncoming rain. He looked up, stopping in the middle of the hall. The front door was wide open. He frowned. He was sure that Ruby had slammed it shut when she left. Of course, the lock was damaged. He would have to fix that. He shut the door carefully and shook his head slightly, an amused smile playing about his mouth. It was strange to think that the last time he had broken her lock, he had been prepared to fight her to get to Henry, whereas this time he had done it for her.

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David stood in the kitchen doorway, leaning against the frame, watching Regina with a slight frown creasing his brow. The woman stood at the kitchen bench. She had not acknowledged his presence. She hadn't moved since he had laid eyes on her, and it didn't look like she had made an attempt to begin preparing breakfast. Her injured hand rested on top of the bench, and her other was gripping the edge of the bench so tightly that the knuckles had turned white. Her eyes were fixed on a point in front of her, and as he followed her gaze he realised with a jolt that she was staring at the knife rack.

As he watched, she released the bench and stretched a trembling hand out towards the carving knife.

'Regina'. He could hear the sharpness in his voice as he pushed off the frame and crossed the room to stand beside her. The woman jumped, hissing in displeasure as her feet settled painfully on the floor again. She did not turn around, and her hand remained suspended in the air, her fingers curled slightly, and her arm trembling from the effort of keeping it still. She tilted her head slightly as he reached her, leaning against the bench beside her. Her eyes were narrowed slightly in irritation, though beneath that he could see something akin to relief. As if she was glad that he had interrupted the path her thoughts had been taking.

It was a testimony to how tired she truly was that she didn't even try to disguise it. Slowly, David lifted a hand and touched her arm, running his hand down her smooth skin gently. She stiffened slightly, but she did not have the energy to pull away. His fingers slid over the back of her hand and underneath, linking their fingers together as he pulled it down between them. He ran a calloused thumb over her knuckles with a tenderness that surprised them both. She closed her eyes, biting her lip slightly. This was exactly what she had left the living room to escape from. She hated that he could comfort her and pull her back from the treacherous depths of her thoughts. She hated that she had no strength to resist it. She hated, more than anything, that every kind gesture reminded her of Daniel, and that it made her even more helpless to resist.

'Thank you'. Her fragile composure wouldn't allow her to hold those words in, and despite her wish that she hadn't said it; she meant it all the same. She had no idea whether she was thanking him for staying with her for a second time, for holding her up when she couldn't hold herself, or for dragging her thoughts away from the knife rack and its easy way out.

David smiled slightly, his thumb still tracing patterns over her knuckles. It was the second time he had been on the receiving end of her thanks. He marvelled at the way her voice softened just a little when she said it, the way it slipped from her tongue far more naturally than any insult she had thrown his way before. 'You're welcome, Regina. I want you to promise me something though, alright?'

She laughed softly. 'Who would think that we would live to see the day that Prince Charming demanded something from the Evil Queen?' Her tone was lightly mocking, though it contained none of her usual sarcasm. 'And what would this be?'

If she had been looking, she would have seen David's eyes turn serious, concern drawing his brows together. 'I want you to promise me that if you ever find yourself going down that train of thought you will talk to someone. Whether it is Henry or me, I want you to promise me that you won't make yourself fight it alone'.

Regina didn't need to ask him what train of thought he was talking about. She hadn't exactly tried to hide what she was thinking of doing. She sighed heavily. 'Alright. I promise'.

There was a beat of silence, during which David continued to smooth his thumb over the soft skin on the back of her hand. 'Henry wanted me to tell you that you can heal yourself'.

She smiled softly, her eyes still closed. Oh how much she loved her son. It hurt some times. It hurt when he called her the Evil Queen, when he pulled away from her embraces and accused her of wickedness. It hurt when she realised that she had hurt him, in a similar way to her own mother. 'I promised him that I wouldn't use magic. There should be no exceptions to that, except when it comes to helping him and those he loves. I at least deserve a little repercussion for my actions'.

David frowned. Was she talking about Daniel's resurrection and death? Or was she talking about her acts as the Evil Queen? 'He loves you. At least heal your feet. There isn't much can do without walking'.

She pulled away from him, aware that she had allowed the contact to endure for too long. She wished that he would leave her alone to her misery. She turned and hobbled over to the table, letting her body collapse into the chair. 'They're not deep cuts. A little discomfort never did anyone any harm'.

David sighed, his frustration at her stubbornness showing. 'Fine. But at least allow me to make breakfast. You can't exactly cook with one hand'.

She had no argument for that. She watched him move about her kitchen, taking the bread from the bin and the jam from the cupboard. She watched him lean against the bench while he waited for the bread to toast, tapping his fingers on the edge of the bench. She watched him retrieve the plates from the cupboard and a knife from the draw, placing the jam and the butter on the table before retrieving a pile of toast from the bench. She watched him set out the plates and twist the top of the jam jar, the muscles in his arms tensing and tightening until the lid gave out with a pop. She watched him, because if she looked away she would have trouble remembering this as anything more than a dream.

'Mom?'

She jumped, startled for the second time in the last twenty minutes, her attention snapping away from the prince to the little boy standing in the doorway. To her surprise, Henry was holding dustpan and brush. He was holding the former carefully out in front of him, and the plastic container was filled to the brim with little, deadly fragments of glass. She frowned. 'Henry, I would have been perfectly happy to do that. You shouldn't have gone near all that glass'.

The little boy shrugged nonchalantly. 'Well I figured that there wasn't much you could do with an injured hand. I wanted to help out, and David was already making breakfast'.

David snorted at the boy's choice of words, avoiding eye contact with Regina as she shot him a glare over her shoulder. Henry walked over to the bin and Regina huffed in irritation. 'Need I remind you both that I am not an invalid? I am perfectly capable of looking after myself'.

Henry slid into the chair, reaching over the table to take her hand. He smiled at her as her eyes softened considerably. 'Well…being able to take care of yourself doesn't mean that others can't do something for you, does it?' The boy could still feel the guilt in his stomach, and any anger he still felt towards her for lying to him was overshadowed by a sudden protective affection. She had been hurt by people all her life, of that he was certain, even if he didn't know her entire story. He was going to do his best to make sure that he never joined that list.

Regina smiled at him as David sat down opposite her, letting her fingers lace through her son's smaller digits. She had missed this; the natural affectionate gestures, the warm smiles, the confirmation that she had done at least one thing right in her life. She had missed the reassurance that she was not so far gone that it was impossible for someone to love her.

As Henry picked a piece of toast off the stack and began to spread a generous amount of jam on top, her eyes drifted up to meet the man's sitting opposite her. He held her gaze with a steady, calm focus. She was still adjusting to having someone's full attention focused on her without any hate or anger behind it. Without quite realising what she was doing, the young woman sent him a small smile. It was all her muscles were capable of, all her fragile emotions would allow, but the gratitude in the small movement was genuine.

He smiled back, wide and charming, and this time when she looked at him, she saw no more than the shepherd he really was. This time, she didn't see Daniel.

* * *

_**So, what do you think? Too out of character? **_

_**As usual, I have nothing written for the next chapter, and though I do have an idea of where I want this to go I don't have all the details written out. so, if you have any suggestions, do feel free to send them my way :)**_

_**Please review!**_


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